Repair work on an old sewer line in front of Western Mercantile on California Street is going a little slower than usual because of seepage from the high water table, but the project should get done in a few days, according to city water department supervisor Ruben Amaro on Tuesday.

“We’re replacing an old sewer line,” he said. “It broke in front of Western Mercantile.”

Amaro said it is hard to estimate the age of the sewer lines running along California Street, but they are at least 30 years old.

“I’ve been here 31 years, and that line has been there since before I started,” he said.

Wet ground is making the task of leveling the manhole base tricky, Amaro said, so the job that should take 20 minutes may end up taking quite a bit longer. Crews will replace 380 feet of the old sewer line south from the Western Mercantile parking lot and east to Sixth Street.